posted on January 5, 2001 08:11:14 AM new
1) Pick a nice worthwhile item that you typically sell, list it at an attractive "1c start no reserve" format in a high-listing proper category
2) Pay enough to feature it at the TOP of the list in that well-followed category
3) Title the auction in a way designed to attract attention, to show that you have something unusual to convey in the text
3a) You might announce immediate relistings of a number of "first bid wins" items on sale to be titled as such in your listings, that you have to do this since you will be unable to continue to sell your previous variety so will try to close out since you've already done the listing work. This particular approach wouldn't be essential, the auction listing could just be a standalone.
4) Take care of business with normal auction info but then go on to say, if true, that YOUR listings will soon drop away strongly, vanish, whatever, due to these Yahoo fees. Point out that BUYERS are just about to lose much of the variety that has been beginning to make Yahoo of some interest to them since nobody will be able to sell $1 items or anything of a moderate price that needs to sit through a number of listings for the right customer to come along.
5) Suggest that if the reader agrees this fee policy is likely a mistake, they should share that thinking with Yahoo. Perhaps list the email addresses, and the chat URL, and AW's URL to these postings.
Note that the 1c-start if used on a decent value item is likely to generate a number of bids as the price creeps up and therefore automatically kick such a protest listing up into higher and higher featured visibility in the overall categories. I had one (non-protest) that only went to $10 from a 1c
start (but a reasonable final price result for me, btw) kick into 425 page views and 6 bookmarks in just a few days due to its being displayed in higher and higher categories.
Actually, "we" could help each other push any such well-designed listings of items we'd be willing to buy into the "screaming-high" listing visibilities by bidding them up in very small increments so the number-of-bid statistic goes high. I don't suggest shilling, I don't suggest bids on anything you won't actually purchase, I simply mention you might help the process by bidding only the minimum increment if you see an attractive "protest" listing from another seller and decide to bid on it to buy it.
Note my intention here is to maximize accurate, honest, and useful
*communication* with the Yahoo managers before they embark on a process that might spiral their site downwards to their personal and business detriment as well as ours, and mine.
"When ya ain't got nothing, you got nothing to lose." -Dylan, Like a
Rolling Stone
"Alice's Restaurant" - Arlo G (reference the last verse of it..) " Just walk in and say 'Shrink, you can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant.' And walk OUT."
posted on January 5, 2001 08:13:50 AM new
I have items closing on YooHoo this weekend and will continue to post until the 10th. You can bet the buyers will get an earfull in the bid-win notification letters etc.
posted on January 5, 2001 08:16:52 AM new
I am so happy to hear that other sellers are making buyers aware. I have been telling each and every buyer - whether we have just started the transaction, in the middle or finishing up (and I have emailed all my repeat customers) what Yahoo is up to and if they value my auction services to please take a moment to contact Yahoo and let them know they are not happy. No sellers + No buyers = NO AUCTIONS
